What Patch 26.18 Changes and Which Modes It Affects

Patch 26.18, published by Riot on September 9, 2026, touches Summoner's Rift balance, the rotating Classic mode, ARAM: Mayhem augment pools, and a new Hall of Legends event for Caps, the third inductee and first Western pro to receive the honor (Patch 26.18 Notes).

On Summoner's Rift, the patch nerfs pro-priority supports Nautilus and Bard, taps down Seraphine bot and Zeri, and buffs Viego, Zaahen, Master Yi, Ekko, and Kassadin. Cassiopeia receives an adjustment intended to reduce her professional-play skew: her Q damage drops at all ranks (75/110/145/180/215 to 65/100/135/170/205) while her AP ratio rises to 75%, and her Q, E, and ultimate ratios shift power toward scaling.

In Classic, Fiora, Galio, Poppy, Shyvana, and Xin Zhao join the playable roster alongside balance changes and the results of the first Council vote, matching the September 8 Dev Update announcement (TL;DW Dev Update). For ARAM: Mayhem players, the patch improves augment pools so the augment choices offered fit the champion you are playing.

Applicable Versions, Platforms, and Prerequisites

This guide covers the live League of Legends client on Patch 26.18 (live September 9, 2026) and looks ahead to Patch 26.19, whose preview notes were shared by RiotPhroxzon and whose live-server date Sportskeeda reports as September 23, 2026. Patch 26.20 is the second Worlds patch and also the starting point for expanded team voice chat in NA and Oceania, per the Dev Update.

Before acting on any step below, confirm your client has updated past 26.17:

1. Launch the client and check the patch number in the bottom-left corner of the login screen.
2. Confirm the modes you want are visible in the Play tab—Classic appears as a selectable queue during its availability window.
3. For the Hall of Legends pass, open the Events tab and verify the Caps pass with its 100 total levels of unlockable rewards is listed.

No ranked prerequisites apply to Classic or ARAM: Mayhem. Ranked 5s participation requires a full premade team of five and, per the Dev Update, runs from Patch 26.18 through December, with rewards from the initial June–September run granted in 26.18.

How to Play the New Demacian Champions in Classic

Classic received broader changes before the Demacian arrivals: brighter lighting and updated map textures, increased IP and XP earn rates, two additional Rune Pages for everyone, a second win-of-the-day bonus, and price reductions on many runes, all confirmed in the Dev Update.

Follow this sequence to jump into the Demacian reunion:

1. Select Classic in the Play tab. The queue appears while the mode is live on 26.18.
2. Pick one of the five new champions—Poppy, Xin Zhao, Shyvana, Galio, or Fiora. Each is newly playable in Classic as of this patch, per both the Dev Update and the patch notes.
3. Assign your bonus Rune Pages. Open your Collection, choose Runes, and configure the two additional pages granted with this update. Rune prices were also decreased, so completing rune sets costs less IP than before.
4. Aim for two win-of-the-day bonuses. A second daily win bonus now exists, so a second victory on the same day yields additional rewards beyond the first.
5. Check the Council vote results. The first Council vote concluded and its results shipped with 26.18; review them in-client to see which changes apply.

Expect a Graves-led Bilgewater follow-up: Graves and three other Bilgewater champions join Classic in the next patch, according to the Dev Update.

How to Earn Caps Hall of Legends Event Rewards

The Hall of Legends event pass honors Rasmus "Caps" Winther, described by Riot as the most decorated player in European League of Legends history. The pass has 100 total levels of unlockable rewards and runs alongside three Tristana skin collections co-developed with Caps—Immortalized Legend Tristana, Risen Legend Orianna, and Risen Legend Tristana all become available September 10, 2026 (Patch 26.18 Notes).

To work through the pass:

1. Open the Events tab after September 10 and claim or purchase the Caps Hall of Legends pass.
2. Complete event missions to progress through the 100 levels.
3. Track headline rewards as you advance: Risen Legend Orianna skin, border, and event chroma; Freljord Taliyah, Elderwood LeBlanc, and Empyrean Akali skins; 125 Mythic Essence; 11 Orbs; 15 Caps-themed icons and emotes; the Unkillable Demon Cactus ward; the Beacon of Hope banner; and the "Martin 1" title.

The Risen Legend, Immortalized Legend, and Signature Immortalized Legend Collections feature commemorative cosmetics, and Riot states some items can be earned while others are purchasable.

How to Approach the New Ranked 5s Run

Ranked 5s returns starting in Patch 26.18 with improvements drawn from feedback on the June–September run. Two structural changes matter for your team's preparation:

• Strategic draft phase: Similar to Clash, teams see some information about opponents before picks and bans, which Riot says is intended to help inform your draft decisions.
• Extended queue window: The queue opens earlier and closes later each weekend.

Practical draft-day sequence:

1. Assemble your five-player roster before the weekend window opens.
2. Enter the queue during the extended window rather than assuming last season's hours.
3. During the strategic draft phase, review the opponent information the client surfaces and plan picks and bans around it.

Rewards from the initial June–September run are granted in 26.18, and the Dev Update confirms a second chance to earn Ranked 5s rewards during the September-through-December run.

For context on ranked integrity: earlier in 2026, Riot performed a hard Apex-tier reset in NA, EUW, EUNE, BR, LAN, and TR at Patch 26.9, resetting Master+ players to Master 0LP and raising LP cutoffs to 800 LP for Challenger and 400 LP for Grandmaster (Apex Tier Ranked Reset). Apex players in affected regions receive Season 2 rewards via a Season 3 reconciliation pass.

Choosing Where to Spend Your Patch: A Quick Comparison

Use this table to decide which 26.18-and-beyond content fits your goals. All entries reflect only what the cited sources state.

Note on the ARAM: Mayhem set: the Dev Update states the next set starts in Patch 26.1 following the music theme. Whether this refers to a season-numbering scheme distinct from the 26.x patch sequence is not clarified in the supplied text, so treat that scheduling reference with caution. The 26.18 patch notes, published later, only discuss augment pool improvements, not a new Mayhem set start date.

Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Symptom: new champions missing in Classic. Possible cause: your client is still on an older patch. Check the version in the launcher, fully restart, and re-queue after updating.

Symptom: Caps event rewards not visible. The skins become available September 10, 2026, one day after the patch notes published on September 9. If the pass is not in your Events tab before that date, wait for the event start rather than reinstalling.

Symptom: Ranked 5s queue unavailable. The queue operates on a weekend window that now starts earlier and ends later, per the Dev Update, but it is not open at all hours. Confirm your team of five is full before the window and check the queue during the extended hours.

Symptom: augment offers feel mismatched in ARAM: Mayhem. Riot explicitly improved augment pools in 26.18 so offered augments fit your champion. If offers still seem off, the pool improvements are ongoing per the patch notes, so this is a known tuning area rather than a client bug.

Symptom: assuming 26.19 balance from old data. The 26.19 preview, per Sportskeeda, buffs Elise, Fiora, Volibear, Aatrox, Aphelios, Draven, Lucian (mid), Kha'Zix, Lillia, and Aurora, and nerfs Vi, Nocturne, Poppy, Orianna, Rumble, Nasus, Lucian (bot), and Ryze, with system buffs to Top Role Quest TP cooldown and Support HP Regen. Plan drafts around these shifts once 26.19 is live (reported September 23, 2026).

FAQ and Completion Checklist

When does Worlds 2026 start? Worlds kicks off October 15 in Los Angeles, California, with Finals in Brooklyn, New York, on November 14, per the Dev Update. Sportskeeda additionally reports the Worlds patch is 26.20.

Which regions get team voice first? NA and Oceania in Patch 26.20, with expansion to more regions depending on how rollout goes, per the Dev Update. Speaking access is tied to Honor level, and voice skins that modify your voice are being added.

Who was inducted into the Hall of Legends? Caps, chosen by an independent voting panel of esports industry veterans, is the third inductee and the first Western pro.

Were there earlier 2026 ranked resets? Yes—a hard Apex-tier (Master+) reset in NA, EUW, EUNE, BR, LAN, and TR at Patch 26.9, resetting visible rank and MMR to Master 0LP, per Riot's /dev post.

Completion checklist:

• Client confirmed on Patch 26.18 or later
• Played at least one Classic game with a new Demacian champion
• Bonus Rune Pages configured
• Caps Hall of Legends pass claimed after September 10, 2026
• Ranked 5s team registered and queue window noted
• Draft plan updated for the 26.19 buff/nerf list

Information boundaries: specific augment contents, the identity of the three Bilgewater champions beyond Graves, voice moderation details, and ARAM: Mayhem mission rewards are not fully enumerated in the supplied sources; verify those in-client as each feature goes live.